The present invention is related to the plastic bag sealing mechanism art and more particularly to such mechanisms that automatically seal successive upwardly open plastic bags that have been filled with a bulk material by clamping and heating the bag sides to a sufficient temperature to melt the plastic material and allow it to become fused.
There is a problem in closing and sealing of gusseted plastic bags that have been filled with a measured amount of compacted material. If the upwardly open bag ends are heat sealed by means of heated rollers pressing the full lengths of the sides together, an overlapping tab will project outwardly from either end of the bag. These tabs are unsightly and are somewhat hazardous in that they may be easily snagged and torn during warehousing and shipping operations. It is therefore desirable to produce a tucked or "gusseted" closed top that does not present outwardly projecting tabs and that produces a neater appearance of the finished packaged product.
It is a first object of the present invention to provide an apparatus whereby filled plastic bags may be closed and sealed to produce a neat appearing finished product without outwardly protruding tabs at the upper ends thereof.
Another object is to provide such a device that may be installed directly adjacent to a bag filling mechanism and may automatically receive and seal the open tops of bags received therefrom.
A further object is to provide such a device that will produce a tucked or "gusseted" sealed top on filled plastic bags in an automatic sequence, thereby requiring the presence of no more than one attendant.
These and still further objects and advantages will become apparent upon reading of the following description, which, taken with the accompanying drawings, describe a preferred form of the invention.